changes in athletes
...t picture to a photograph of current freshman Lamar Hurd, there is a very noticeable difference. Lamar Hurd has a lot more muscle mass and definition. This change in player appearance was not a gradual process. In fact, the following three pictures viewed after Steve Johnson’s also showed very little muscle and definition. In the mid 1990’s weight lifting was just becoming a constant part of training for basketball and was not very popular. Today every college team, NBA team, and even high school team, is lifting weights. This has lead to bigger, bulkier players. The cause of players lifting weights has been the motivation to be stronger and faster than your opponent. It has been proven lifting weights improves strength, speed, and quickness. Lifting weights has also been used for injury prevention because it strengthens muscles and tendons, making them less likely to strain or tear. Another major change in OSU basketball players has been the size of the uniforms. Today players are wearing baggy shorts that hang as low as two to three inches below the knee and jerseys that are much wider and longer. In the early 1980’s shorts were worn very high above the knee and ended at the beginning of a players thigh. The biggest reason for shorts beginning to become longer was Michael Jordan. He was the first player to have new shorts made for him that were longer than everyone else’s. A difference of only a couple inches made a huge impact on the game of basketball and started the transition to long and baggy shorts. As recognizable in the five photographs, the player’s shorts stayed the same length until the picture of Brent Barry in 1995. The shorts are only three or four inches above his knee, a large difference c...